September.11.2025 Marcela Duque Response to:
Reflection on "In Plato’s Cave" by Susan Sontag
Photography is the opportunity to have a peak at what the others see. It is the frozen image that can be relieved, replayed and imagined in our minds every time we see it in a photo.
The popular saying “art thrives in misery” could be a reason why many photographic pieces gain recognition during moments of crisis, like war and pain. The image of misery, when framed through the lens, becomes something people consume aesthetically. This is one of the disturbing truths Sontag mentions, photography both informs and anesthetizes.
One of Sontag’s most striking comparisons is between photography and orgasm; a comparison that she uses to show the intense feelings of the act of taking a picture. I admit that I found this comparison difficult since it did not seem rational. To me, it seemed exaggerated and somewhat out of place. It could be that her point was not meant to give a literal expression but more so that the act of photographing can provoke that kind of intense emotional response, feeling satisfaction every time a picture. She brings out more the emotional side of photography, an urge to capture the moment, to possess the image, and to feel satisfaction in doing so. Photography, in her opinion, seems to be not able to be separated from emotion, because one could say art itself is inseparable from feelings.
I think it is important to also recognize the rational side of photography, which Sontag mentions briefly but does not emphasize it enough. She observes that photographers often take multiple shots until they arrive at the one that feels “perfect.” This process reveals photography as a search for truth, or at least a closer approximation to it. The satisfaction of finding the right image is not only emotional but intellectual. A desire to make sense of reality, by selecting the one that captures reality as it is perceived by the photographer or even others. I think that is the beauty of it. To be able to express and communicate a message with just an image. On the one hand, it could be addictive because it can mix all kinds of emotions, or even the desire to hold on to a memory that was lost gone. On the other hand, a rational need to document, organize, and interpret the world is also a reason. Sontag reminds us that photographs are never neutral, they are many times biased, choices framed by intention, by taste, and by ideology. Yet within those choices lies our human attempt to both experience and understand life.
To me, this is where the power of photography lies. It is not an addiction, nor just an aestheticization of suffering. The photograph may never fully contain reality, but it can reflect our endless effort to preserve it, to relive it, and to give it meaning. It could be more than searching, selecting, or feeling, or maybe all of those, but for sure it is a search of expression and truth exposed in form of images.
Reflection
“The Rising Risk, and How We Stop It” by W. J. Hennigan
While reading “The Rising Risk, and How We Stop It” by W. J. Hennigan, the experience was actually a chilling one, and this primarily relates to the fact that I, personally, tend to push this kind of matter to the side and let the subject fade away into the annals of history books, when, in fact, the threat of nuclear wars tends to be far more immediate and real today. According to Hennigan, this perception that one tends to hold actually poses a great danger, and this danger was not really just eradicated; rather, it just took a back seat and now tends to make itself heard again.
Among the most striking elements for me was how different the nuclear world is today compared with how it was after the end of the Cold War. Back in the 1990s, it appeared as if nuclear war was a problem of the past, because of the dissolution of the Soviet Union and a subsequent nuclear arsenal reduction. However, as indicated in this documentary by Hennigan, this is far from true. Instead of decreasing their nuclear arsenal stocks, great nuclear powers modernize them. Furthermore, most of the agreements that facilitate communication between countries are either on their way out or already gone. This has made conflicts a real possibility since a misunderstanding can easily escalate into a disaster that gets out of hand.
Additionally, the article links this threat to present-day conflicts in the world. Problems such as the conflict in Ukraine, the Middle East crisis, North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons, and the conflict regarding Taiwan make this threat seem all the more plausible. What alarmed me the most is that all these were situations that could never be foreseen, and now they are being considered the potential outcomes. That is what made this threat seem so urgent and so immediate.
Another crucial aspect pointed out by Hennigan is the speed at which society can become desensitized to the threat of nuclear war. Since the threat is always perceived as extreme, we feel as though it can never actually occur. The reality is, this normalization is what is dangerous. By failing to prioritize the threat, there becomes no pressure for the leaders to stop it. The danger is not ignored; in fact, it only grows.
Additionally, I appreciated the way that pictures are used in the article. The pictures give aa a idea about what the article is about even before you start reading it and allow readers to connect with what they are being told emotionally. Especially this is important for people with attention deficit disorders or dyslexia that make it difficult for them to follow what they are reading. The interactive design makes it easier to follow and focus attention.
Overall, the article is successful because it warns readers. Nuclear warfare is not a matter from before; it is a threat faced in the modern age.